The present invention relates to a cooking appliance with a cooking hob and notably to a fixed cooking appliance intended to be incorporated into a rack placed in a work surface or in a cooker or a mobile cooking appliance which is able to be moved manually and easily.
A cooking appliance with a cooking hob includes a cooking hob, for example a ceramic hob, on which it is possible to place a saucepan, a frying pan or any other utensil likely to contain foodstuffs to be re-heated or cooked, even on which foodstuffs to be re-heated or cooked can be placed directly.
Furthermore, said cooking appliance generally has a casing including a bottom and side walls forming a base inside of which is (or are) positioned one (or several) heating element(s), such as, for example, radiant or halogen hob plates, as well as means of control so as to vary the power thereof, even to program when they start and when they stop. The cooking hob closes the top of the casing.
The present invention relates more particularly to a cooking hob for a fixed or mobile cooking appliance including, on the one hand, a base hob, notably a ceramic base hob, having at least one cooking area and including, on the other hand, at least one control and/or information area, said control and/or information area being formed by a window separated from said base hob by at least one joint made of synthetic material.
Realizing a joint between a window, under which is positioned a screen, and the base hob is known notably from French patent application No FR 2 746 904. The invention which is the object of said document is based on the selection of the material of the joint in order to enable tightness between the window and the base hob.
In FIG. 3 said document shows a screen which “floats in space”; there is no description of any means for fixing the screen. It is supposed that the screen is fixed to the casing, but there is no information in this regard.
A first disadvantage of said configuration is that it is difficult to realize precise positioning and precise fixing of the screen, in the three spatial dimensions, in relation to the window which is situated below it; now this positioning is very important in order to ensure a perception of quality of the display of the screen through the window.
Said disadvantage is reinforced by the fact that the connection between the window and the base hob is a connection with permanent elasticity as claimed in the document. Said connection, however, is not rigid and the window can thus move with use. Said movement is harmful to the perception of the screen display through the window.
Said problem of good perception of the screen display through the window is all the more important as it is now possible to realize small-sized screens with very high levels of resolution; however, if the last element inserted between the screen and the observer is not well designed, then the final resolution will be seriously affected.